Watching and Waiting
by talkstoangels77
Summary: *Response to pinkconchshell's bouquet challenge* He makes a request, she complies...yet, neither of them speaks a word.
1. Haku: Watching

**AN: **This is the first part of my response to pinkconchshell's bouquet challenge! It's not complete, so the purpose of the bouquet has yet to be revealed, at least, I think so...but, I know exactly what's in the next part, so it should be up within one or two days. Anyway, I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I do not in any way own the brilliance that is _Spirited Away_...

He watches, wishing he could comfort her, as she paces about her room, nervous over her first day at her new school. Despite the words she has spoken to her parents, he can sense she is still somewhat-overcome by that seemingly-ingrained fear of the unknown, of not being accepted. And as far she knows, she is facing it alone, for even though his magic is far stronger now that he has been freed, it is still difficult for him at this point to fully appear in the human world, since that which represents his spirit no longer exists here.

Continuing to follow her with his eyes as she stalks about the room, he spots a small white card. It is not unfamiliar to him, as he spent some time carrying it around, enough so that he does not need to look at it to know what is written there. Memories rise to the surface of his mind of the two of them sitting in a garden as he returned it and her clothes to her.

"_My goodbye card!...Chihiro…Chihiro, that's my name, isn't it?"_

He blinks as the memory fades, a thought coming to him. He looks around to see she has apparently left the room, and taken the little piece of paper with her, as it is no longer upon the desk where it had lain only moments ago. However, before he can leave the room, she returns, holding a small vase filled with a few sprigs of pink flowers, slightly dingy, as though they had gone a period of time without care. It is the sight of the small card nestled among them which cements his resolve. He leaves, stepping out through the wall and gliding away onto the wind, determined to find that for which he seeks.

It is a few hours and quite a few more shops later before he finally finds one that carries the item he has in mind. However, he decides to wait a few more hours, seeing as it would not be a good idea if the humans were to see a bunch of flowers suddenly floating away.

When nightfall arrives, he steps inside, searching for the flower he desires. He stops in front of them and pulls out a group of them, then frowns as some of the blossoms fall off as he does so. Remembering the state of the flowers in her room, he uses some of his magic to place a spell upon those in his hand. Now they will last much longer, as he wants them to.

However, his frown persists as he continues to gaze upon the blue flowers in his hand. Somehow, they don't seem quite right. He looks about the room, pausing when his eyes fall upon a container filled with pink blossoms. The frown turns into a smile when he reads the name, thinking of how well it fits with their story.

Grabbing one of the flowers, he turns toward the counter where he had seen people paying for their purchases earlier, and places a small piece of gold upon it, for it would not do well for him to simply take them. He turns to leave, but halts upon spotting a small rack filled with cards. Selecting one with the image of a dragon upon it, he writes down a simple, three-word message.

Returning to her room, he checks to make sure she is asleep, then places the bouquet and the card on the stand next to her bed. Stepping back, Haku surveys the grouping of forget-me-nots with the single pink lady's slipper in the middle, then decides to leave, suddenly shy at what the thought of Chihiro's reaction to his gift might be.

**Soooo, any guesses as to what the card says?**


	2. Chihiro: Waiting

**AN**: Alright, now, how many of you thought that the card said "I love you"?...Come on, I know there had to be a few...Sorry, I'm not _quite_ that cliche. Anyway, the is the second part, as well as the end, of this fic...at least for now. Maybe I might come back and add to it if I get inspired...But at least for now it's complete.

Disclaimer: If you read the first chapter, you know this already. If you haven't read the first chapter...Wait, why are you starting with the second chapter?

* * *

_Wait for me._

It's been almost nine years since she awoke to find a small card bearing that message, along with a bouquet of flowers which still has yet to fade away, next to her bed. And she has done so, patiently waiting these last nine years to finally meet him again.

It wasn't as though it was the last time she had heard from him, either. Although that one card is the only one he ever left, that bouquet was simply the first in a rather long series of flowers he has left for her. Sometimes, on occasions such as her birthday or the time she graduated high school, they have been great, big bunches of colorful blossoms, as if it is the only way he can think of to express himself alongside the gifts and well-wishes of her family and friends.

However, it's the ones that he left for her in her times of trouble which she loves best, the ones that give her the reassurance that she needs to keep going. These are usually rather small or simple, such as a few cheerful Black-eyed Susans or the giant sunflower which she has until today kept in a tall vase by her window.

She's rather lucky, she muses to herself as she stares out the window of the taxi which is driving her to her new apartment, that her parents, although they did not remember the details of their experience in the spirit world, seem to subconsciously remember the actions that got them there, for their manners improved a great deal upon their return to the mortal one.

At first, neither of them tried to enter her room without knocking, and then, as time had gone on, they had rarely even done that, simply waiting for her to step outside instead. She remembers her mother mentioning something about them giving her the privacy she deserved as she got older, when she questioned her about it.

Not that she didn't appreciate it. After all, it would have been rather hard to explain to her parents just where all the flowers had come from, not to mention the fact that as of yet, not one of the blossoms had faded in any way.

Even though she knows he has been there, it has still been hard for her sometimes to keep from crying out to him. However, she has managed to keep her desire to scream at him to herself, the questions of why and when remaining solely within her mind.

Besides, it may be easier for her to deal with now that she is moving into her own, small, apartment, especially considering where it is. She had saved up for the past nine years, planning on this move as soon as she realized that his singular message meant it would probably be some time before he revealed himself. Not to mention, that the location of the apartment makes her feel closer to him all on its own.

She wonders, for a moment, whether or not he has followed her here, and if he did, if he has realized yet where her new residence is. She smiles as the car comes to a stop, thinking about how this was the first place they connected.

A short while later, she is handing over a few bills to both the driver and the moving company, steeling herself mentally as she begins to head up the stairs to her new apartment. She opens up the door and lets herself in, turning back around to lock it once more.

There is sudden rush of air behind her, and she turns around, gasping at the multitude of flowers that have appeared like magic in her front room. She steps forward, reaching out to touch one of them, yet somehow she is not at all surprised to find that they are, indeed, real.

There is a sudden creak of the floor behind her, and Chihiro turns around, only to see a bouquet of white carnations and red tulips-a strange mixture, she thinks- held out to her, before her eyes travel beyond it, to a face that is slightly older than the one she remembers, as if he had aged along with her, but is still undeniably Haku.

The bouquet is forgotten as she rushes into his arms. At last, his time of watching and her time of waiting is over.

**And that's that. This challenge is complete!...though, does anybody get what the flowers mean? Or where Chihiro's living?**


End file.
